Cracked top

For her birthday in January, I bought my oldest daughter a Mainland soprano ukulele with a red cedar top. She's been busy with school, so the ukulele has sat for a while.

I picked it up this evening, to play with whilst chatting to her, and I noticed a hairline crack in the top, from the corner of the fretboard to the soundhole. I can open the crack from beneath, so I know it's a crack rather than a finish crackle.

Looking at Mainland's website, these ukuleles have a one year warranty, so long as the fault is not through negligent storage.

Which is what I am wondering about -- what is the likelihood that the crack is our fault?

• I have an accoustic guitar with a solid cedar top, no trouble.
• I have a number of ukuleles with solid spruce and mahogany tops, no trouble.
• None of my instruments gives me fret-sprout trouble.
• The indoor humidity in this country is never low. It rains or snows steadily all year, plus we live by the sea.
• When the temperature does drop in the winter, we burn paraffin, and I place a bowl of water on the top of the heater, to keep the humidity up.

The one thing we do not do is measure the humidity. It has simply not been a problem.

So, in the circumstances I describe, would you contact Mainland, or get the instrument repaired and swear to take even greater care in future?

Contact them. It's free to ask questions.

First of all, the crack can be repaired, so do not despair.

Secondly, go ahead and contact Mainland. What do you have to lose? While I have no opinion as to the cause of the crack, contacting the dealer (assuming you purchased from Mainland) is always the best first step.